


CONVERGENCE

by The_Cat_Curiosity_Killed



Series: Awakening [2]
Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Nalu - Freeform, One Shot, Reunion, Romance, natsu x lucy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-31
Updated: 2015-01-31
Packaged: 2018-03-09 20:19:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,695
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3263081
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Cat_Curiosity_Killed/pseuds/The_Cat_Curiosity_Killed
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Reunion Fic :) Natsu and Happy return after their year long journey. (Spoilers for chapter 416)</p>
            </blockquote>





	CONVERGENCE

**Author's Note:**

> I have about a billion different reunion scenarios in my head but this is the one that ended up being written. I might write some more but we'll see what happens after the update on Monday. 
> 
> Disclaimer: FAIRY TAIL IS OWNED BY HIRO MASHIMA.

\----------

Lucy always took her time in the afternoons. There was a steady pause between each 'click' her boots made against the cobble-stone path as she walked home from the cafe where she worked.  
It was one of those special afternoons in Magnolia, not too cold, not too warm, but just right. It was the kind of afternoon that demanded to be savoured, and Lucy was only too happy to oblige. 

Walking at a leisurely pace while the sun began to set, bleeding red and gold into the sky.  
Hearing the town become quiet as businesses closed, and people hung up their hats for the day. Smelling the cinnamon still clinging to her clothes as the breeze caught it, mingling it with the million other smells that Magnolia held.  
This was Lucy's favourite part of the day. 

Work was always so stressful, dealing with customers and being on her feet all day left Lucy tired and aching for a warm bath. But when she did get home it was always too quiet and made her long to do something with her hands, to keep herself busy until she forgot how empty her apartment felt with only her in it. 

These quiet walks were her in-between, her safe place.  
Lucy felt peaceful, content enough to let her mind wander to things that she was usually too busy or too exhausted to think about.  
Her rent was due soon, but she'd payed for it in advance with her last pay-check, one of the perks from working a steady job she supposed. Still, she missed working for the guild.  
It had been twelve months and fifteen days since Fairy Tail had disbanded, Lucy hadn't even realised she'd been counting. She still walked past the empty lot where their proud guild had once stood. But not too often, even though it had been over a year, the sight still saddened her.  
And why shouldn't it? Fairy Tail had been her home, the one place she knew she belonged to, not even a hundred years would change that. Lucy glanced down at the guild mark on her right hand, the only thing that had been left behind when the master had decided not to rebuild the guild. 

Of course, it wasn't completely over. There was more to Fairy Tail than a building, even with no official guild, Fairy Tail was still a part of them all.  
Gray had visited a couple times, but other than that Lucy hadn't seen much of him. It was alright, she knew he was training hard to be able to defeat E.N.D. Juvia helped him train a lot, she seemed to be happy, and Lucy was happy for them both.  
Erza had stuck around to help rebuild the town, she'd stayed with Lucy for a while, sleeping on a futon. Lucy had been all too glad to have the company. Though she felt a little guilty that perhaps Erza knew how lonely she was, and that her concern was part of the reason Erza spent so much time with her.  
Eventually though, Erza left to take care of some business of her own. She wouldn't share many details with her, but Lucy could tell it was something that was weighing heavily on her mind.  
So when Erza asked her if she would be alright by herself Lucy smiled and ignored the urge to latch on to the scarlet-haired woman's armour and never let go. 

Levy was probably the most constant person in her life, but she and Gajeel were nearly inseparable and even with Panther-Lily there, Lucy had a tendency to feel like a bit of a third wheel.  
Wendy had taken apprenticeship under Porlyusica-San, and worked hard every day while Carla assisted. Lucy was proud of her, she'd grown so much in the past year, and she was really coming into her own as a Dragon Slayer. 

Of course, Lucy hadn't been slacking off either. When she wasn't working hours at the cafe, she was training with her spirits. Capricorn had proven to be an excellent tutor, there were so many areas of her magical power she'd never explored before.  
She'd gotten stronger, much stronger, and so had her spirits.  
She hadn't seen Aquarius since the day she'd sacrificed her key, but her other spirits brought her news of her wellbeing and Scorpio always promised to remind her that Lucy missed her and hoped to see her again some day. She had a feeling she would. Even though Aquarius's key was broken, Lucy still felt connected to her friend.  
She didn't believe that would ever change, no matter how much time passed before they met each other again. 

It was the same with all of her Nakama, everyone from the guild, even when apart, they were all thinking of each other. At least, she thought about them. She tried not to sometimes, because sometimes the memories stirred emotions that would overwhelm her. Like the events that caused them had passed only a day ago, instead of a year. 

Briefly, she wondered if he ever thought about her.  
Lucy imagined he would, she had been his team mate after all. And, she was his friend, his best friend, after Happy of course.  
Lucy missed Happy too, missed his constant talk of fish and how much he liked Carla, she even missed his teasing.  
It had been hard. More than hard, it had been devastating. To lose her two best friends so suddenly. At first she had been shocked, her brain had denied it, still expecting to find them doing push-ups on her bed instead of the letter that spelt out their departure in messy handwriting. Then she was sad, she cried so much she didn't think the tears would ever stop, she felt lonely and small and broken. When the tears ran out she got angry, furious that they just left her without saying a proper goodbye, and hurt that they didn't take her with them.  
A pattern formed, sad, then angry, then sad, and then just a culmination of misery that threatened to bury her alive. 

When all of that passed however, Lucy just felt... empty. 

It was funny, how Lucy had always considered her two most frequent house guests to be a hassle. She'd thought of them as extra weight. She'd loved them of course, but always with a degree of tolerance.  
As soon as Lucy was relieved of that 'weight' however, she realised how wrong she had been. Somewhere between the first moment she'd bumped into Natsu and Happy in Hargeon Town, and the moment she'd held that scrawled letter in her hands, they'd become a part of her. Without her noticing they had latched on to some vital segment inside her chest. When they left, they'd taken that piece of her with them. And Lucy had felt, well... incomplete ever since. 

She wondered whether they felt the same way without her, whether Happy ever missed her.  
She wondered if Natsu ever stopped what he was doing because he smelt, or maybe caught a glimpse of something that made him remember one of their adventures together.  
Lucy was often caught off guard by such triggers, the smell of sandalwood, a single sakura bloom as it drifted past on the breeze.  
Little things that crept up on her without notice and always left her with a bitter-sweet feeling.  
She supposed he did think of her, she'd never doubted whether Natsu cared for her or not, and he'd never given her a reason to.  
Well, he had left her behind, but after a while Lucy had been able to understand why.  
She didn't resent his need to leave any less... but she could understand it.  
No... Lucy had no doubt Natsu thought about her.  
But sometimes, she was faced with the possibility that although he probably missed her a great deal, he was content without her. He'd been gone a whole year, hadn't he? Surely that meant his solitude was tolerable, Lucy seemed to be the only one who couldn't cope with being alone.  
It made her feel a little pathetic, like she depended on Natsu too much. 

The thought was always a sobering one, and Lucy never dwelled on it for long.  
Shaking it from her mind she continued down the path. Lucy started instead, to think about whether she was hungry enough to make the effort of cooking dinner. Lucy thought the prospect of simply going straight to bed was much more appealing, but she knew she should probably eat something.  
Lucy had just decided on a compromise of eating a granola bar before slipping under the covers, when her train of thought was suddenly interrupted, 

“Luuuuucy!” 

 

… … … 

Happy took off ahead of him, calling Lucy's name.  
Natsu chuckled, the little blue exceed hadn't stopped all day. Of course, Natsu was just as excited, but he'd hardly been able to get a word in with all of Happy's chatter. 

Natsu couldn't stop himself from smiling. He couldn't see her yet, but he knew she was close. Even with a breeze so faint, Lucy's scent still managed to reach him.  
It had been a year, but the smell of vanilla and honeysuckle was immediately recognisable. 

Natsu's heart began to beat faster, she was so close.  
Natsu was almost giddy, he was finally going to see her again.  
He'd missed her, both of them had. Every day they travelled, every new place they visited, every exciting adventure they had was tainted with the knowledge that Lucy wasn't there to share it.  
It had taken months before Natsu had stopped turning around expecting to see her behind him. How many times had he spotted a pretty looking flower, or a strange new animal and wanted to point it out to her, only to remember with disappointment that she wasn't there.

Natsu felt bad for leaving her behind, he knew it would have upset her. But Lucy being sad was better than Lucy being in danger, and that was precisely the reason he'd left.  
He remembered writing the letter, it had been impossible to keep his hand steady. All he could think about was how no matter what it said, Lucy would be hurt by his disappearance.  
Natsu hoped she had been able to read it, he hoped it had helped her to understand why he had to go.  
He'd considered just saying good bye to her face, but he'd known she would protest. She would have cried, or yelled at him, or maybe both. She would have asked him not to go, or to take her with him. To be honest, Natsu hadn't been confident he could refuse her if she did.  
Natsu had never been too good with words, but he had faith that Lucy was smarter than he was articulate.  
Still, he knew she was likely to be mad.  
Despite that though, Natsu only quickened his pace. Whatever Lucy had in store for him, he'd just be happy to see her. 

Natsu ran, trying to keep up with his little blue friend. Natsu rounded a side-street, catching site of Happy just as he flew into the bosom of a surprised girl with blonde hair. 

Natsu froze.  
Lucy said nothing at first, just stared open-mouthed at the blue fluff-ball that was snuggling into her neck. Then she seemed to recover and her eyes shone with tears as she squeezed the little exceed so tight Natsu worried she'd flatten him. She hadn't spotted him yet, and for some reason he couldn't identify Natsu didn't want her to. He was content watching the teary reunion of his best friends. And, her obliviousness also gave him a chance to catch his breath. 

She was almost the same as the day he'd last saw her. Her hair was longer. Once shoulder-length, it now reached her lower back, he liked it. She was a little thinner, like she hadn't been eating properly, he didn't like that as much. She still wore clothes that were too flimsy for any weather below 30° -though now that Natsu noticed, she seemed to be wearing some kind of waitress uniform. 

Over all Lucy looked well, maybe a little sad, but healthy.  
She looked pretty too, but Lucy had always been pretty. 

“It's so good to see you Happy...” she said and Natsu was glad to hear her voice again.  
“But wait,” Lucy said holding Happy at arms length so that she could see his face, “if you're here then...” Lucy trailed off, looking around, “then where's...”  
Natsu decided it was time to show himself, time to face whatever the blonde had in store for him. Fury, a lecture, a beating, whatever it was he'd take it. He'd left her after all, so he'd accept any punishment she directed at him as long as it made things okay again. 

“Natsu...” her voice was small, breathless almost. Natsu didn't know what to do, Lucy proceeded to stare at him, eyes wet with tears and fixed on him intensely.  
Feeling slightly unsure, he smiled at her sheepishly, “hey Lucy...” his voice was softer than he'd meant it to be, but Lucy didn't seem to notice. 

“You're back...”

Natsu shrugged, “yeah...” 

Lucy was still staring at him, but her eyes had begun to cloud with tears once more, “y-you...” she said taking a step forward, “y..ou.. y-”  
Lucy was marching towards him now, closing the distance between them, each stride more determined than the last.  
“You idiot!”  
Natsu had braced himself for a Lucy-kick, but instead found himself half tackled by the tearful blonde. Lucy's arms wound tightly around his neck, her head pressed into his shoulder. He could already feel his shirt getting soaked with her tears but he didn't care. Instinctively, he wrapped his arms around her, laughing at the way she clung to him. Not really because he found it funny, but rather because he was so ecstatic to be close to her again that if he didn't laugh, he wasn't so sure he wouldn't burst into tears too. 

Natsu noted that Lucy's sobs had become shorter, happier sounds as she nestled her head under his chin. Natsu could feel her smiling against him, he couldn't help the way his own smile grew in return.

“I missed you...” she whispered into his neck, her voice raspy from crying, “I missed you so much.”

Natsu's smile softened and he indulged his desire to be closer to her, settling his cheek on top of her head. Lucy's hair tickled his nose and he breathed deeply the smell of vanilla and honeysuckle, noting the faint hint of coffee and cinnamon. Natsu held her tighter, thinking of every day he'd tried to recall her scent, her voice, the softness of her skin under his hands. He thought how very pale his memory of Lucy had been compared to the real thing.

Natsu buried his nose into her soft hair, his lips brushed gently against her crown.  
“I missed you too, Lucy.” 

“What about me?” Happy asked, flying above them. 

Lucy laughed and said that of course she'd missed him, then she ushered him to join their embrace. “Come here, silly cat.”

They stood like that for a while, long enough to see the first stars of evening appear in the sky. Natsu briefly wondered if they were going to separate. He decided that move would be up to Lucy, because he had no intention of letting go.  
In he end, Lucy did pull away. But she didn't get far before taking his hand and pulling him along behind her with a smile. 

“You guys are probably hungry right? I'll cook you something to celebrate.”

Natsu smiled, “alright! I'm starving, right Happy?” he said turning to his exceed pal. 

“Aye, sir!”

Lucy laughed, “okay, okay, let's go home then.”

Home, let's go home.  
Natsu didn't know if Lucy had realised what she'd said.  
A slip of the tongue probably, but Natsu didn't mind.  
He glanced down at the slender hand that wrapped around his wrist, pink guild mark bright even under the darkening sky. 

Natsu smiled, a year of travelling was finally over.  
Right now, he was home.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading please Kudos and Comment :) I appreciate feedback.


End file.
